It lies somewhere between The Beatles and The Traveling Wilburys, so it must be George Harrison. And it is! "All Those Years Ago", to be precise. George was responsible for many of my favourite Beatles songs, and yet his solo career is, to me, an embarrassing black hole. It is a bit like loving the first two volumes of "Lord of the Rings" but never getting around to reading the third. Paul had all the hits. John had all the fame. Ringo became the voice of Thomas the Tank Engine (I haven't heard Ringo's solo records either). George just quietly kept on doing his thing, and like a fool I wasn't listening.
But this was, perhaps, his own fault: releasing a triple album as his first post-Beatles record raised the bar way too high, and after that there was no way for me to get a handle on George Harrison Solo. So I really don't have too much to say about this song, listening to it, as I am, in a vacuum only really intruded upon by faint memories of "My Sweet Lord". Of course, "All Those Years Ago" is a lovely song. It may not set the world on fire (those synths stick out like sore thumbs) but it also doesn't make me feel any better about having ignored him for so long. The first 25 seconds are the best; that is the period in which your brain says "Beatles!" "George!" And you smile.
